Koa Initiative

The Koa Initiative promotes traditional improvement and planting of Acacia koa, a fast growing tree species found only in Hawai‘i and the state’s premier timber species. The mighty Koa is one of the world’s finest sources of timber used for instruments, furniture, fine art, and Hawaiian sailing canoes. Because Koa has a high capacity to enrich soils, create critical habitat for endangered forest birds, sequester carbon, and provide shade for other native plants, this ecological and cultural keystone is also ideally suited for restoration of Hawaii’s degraded pasture lands. The Koa Initiative will support diverse projects focusing on returning Koa forest cover in Hawai’i including tree improvement, partnership driven watershed restoration, smaller stewardship projects, regeneration, silviculture, sustainable harvesting and conservation genetics.